As a writer, I occasionally find my self observing in order to find inspiration. Okay, the inspiration is just a perk, I thoroughly enjoy “people-watching” whether it sparks inspiration or not. I find it fascinating watching people go about their daily lives; some nonchalantly, some hurried and scattered. Recently, or more like over the course of the last three months, I have had the pleasure of observing an ordinary man and seemingly ordinary woman blossom a strangership into what appears to be a budding and potentially blooming relationship. I could be wrong of course since this is purely observation.
It started in March on a Wednesday to be exact. That is when I first noticed them. I was coming back to work; my first day back from an eight week maternity leave. I like to think this was their first encounter, but in my absence I can’t be certain. Regardless, I was sitting at the light of Charlotte and Monticello waiting to turn left across the new light rail tracks when a tall, balding man came into view on the sidewalk across the way. I would assume he is in his mid to late thirties. He was dressed in a grey suit minus the blazer. On his right side he carried a briefcase-bag, or so I call them. His left hand was in his pocket. He had a fairly solemn gait and stared down at his feet as he walked. His glasses slipped down the bridge of his nose three times in the minute and ten seconds I was stuck sitting at this light. He would adjust them with his left hand and continue on. Anyway, something caught his eye which caused him to look behind himself briefly.
Enter a blonde, shorter, lost looking woman. She was dressed in a frumpy, dark pants outfit; her hair was being halfway held back in a clip and she walked slowly with her head down also. This woman clearly caught the man’s eye because when he looked forward he immediately looked back behind him, stopped and waved at the woman. Generally speaking, one would have thought the two knew each other until observing the woman’s reaction. She stopped, looked around for anyone else this man could have been waving at, twirled a lock of hair when she realized she was the only other person sharing the sidewalk with the tall balding man and shyly raised her arm and waved meekly back.
The light turned green and I began making my turn onto Monticello. The man continued walking with his head down and his hand in his pocket, but now he was smiling from ear to ear. The woman seemed even more timid than before as I passed her, she had slowed her walk to allow more space between the two of them, but there was the slightest hint of a smile on her face also.
Fast forward to the following Monday, at the same location. This time the woman was walking ahead of the man but they seemed to be conversing with each other. Although I couldn’t hear what they were saying, I could tell it was just small talk because the conversation ended shortly before they reached the corner of Charlotte and Monticello. Her gait sped up ever so slightly. I could tell she was still nervous and uncertain of the man following her. Who could blame her? Being a single woman walking alone Downtown; anything could happen. Regardless, the tall, jacketless man was being careful not to follow too closely, respecting her space. I like to think he told her to have a nice day as they parted ways at the corner because she turned around and said thank you with a smile before crossing over Charlotte.
Over the course of the last few months I watched as this shy, lonely woman became cheerful and chatty with this man. The man’s demeanor has adjusted; he now walks with his head up and a newer confidence. The hand that always stayed in his pocket is now out and used for gestures during their conversations. The large awkward gap they kept between them as they walked has slowly closed so that they’re not quite holding hands yet, but they touch from time to time. He still wears his jacketless suits but her wardrobe has gotten tighter and more colorful; playful even. Her hair is generally worn down and straight now and they both wear huge smiles across their faces.
Today, she was in a tastefully short, sleeveless, pink dress which hugged her curves, accessorized with cute complementing flats. They stood, on the corner of Charlotte and Monticello, facing each other. I couldn’t see her face because her back was to me as I sat at the same light I always do each morning, but I like to think, judging by her happy swaying motion, that her facial expressions mirrored his with the same happy-go-lucky expression – like there was no other place he would rather be than in that moment, on that corner, sharing a conversation with her.